Moral Hazard and Letting Yourself Go (Appearance-wise)

Source: http://www.infoniac.com/uimg/women-putting-make-up-on

Moral hazard occurs when an individual becomes insured against some risk and subsequently takes less care to protect himself from that risk. For example, many have worried that the government's bailouts of big banks have created a moral hazard in which banks are now incentivized to engage in even riskier financial practices, "knowing" that the government will just bail them out if they get into trouble in the future.
The other night, my roommate and I were both getting ready for dates at the same time. In both of our cases, these were 1st- or 2nd- dates with the particular guys. As we stood behind the bathroom counter, powdering our faces and shaping our eyebrows, she said, "You know what I miss about being in a relationship? Not needing to take so much time to get ready for a date!!!" I chuckled in agreement. So true. Now, it's not like we let ourselves become ugly as soon as we have a boyfriend, but I know that I tend to let a few things slide. . . . like, maybe I'll get a little lax on keeping up with my pedicures, or maybe I'll be okay with wearing my hair in a ponytail more often instead of always curling it, or maybe I'll actually let my bf see me without makeup--especially if we're going on a hike, playing tennis, or doing something of the sort.

Okay, I hope I haven't just blacklisted myself from the date list of any cool guys who might be reading this thing, but, for what it's worth, I can assure you that I'm not the only girl who may behave this way. Besides, I know that guys certainly respond to the same incentives; i.e., some may take a little less care in their appearance/manners once a relationship is secured. It's as if the added commitment of seeing someone consistently acts as a mild "insurance" against getting dumped on a whim. Sound like a moral hazard to you? Sure.

Is this a major problem? I don't think so. First of all, what's the harm of occasionally wearing a little less makeup or maybe "forgetting" to open her car door after dates 1-3? (Sources tell me, in fact, that plenty of guys complain about girls wearing "too much" makeup.) Also, there's a limit to "risky" behavior. It's true that being in a relationship gives both participants a sense of security or insurance, but it's certainly not full insurance against breaking up. After all, for every relationship I've entered, I've also gone through a subsequent break-up (that kind of has to be true mathematically, doesn't it?) And just as insurance companies mitigate the moral hazard problem by instituting coinsurance, premiums, and deductibles as ways to incentivize the insured to "share the burden of the risks," our level of personal commitment to a given relationship prevents us from doing anything too drastic that would make our partner suffer a "loss" and walk away, thereby hurting us in the process.

So, here's to fighting the moral hazard and keeping ourselves looking hot well beyond date #1! ;)